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Amazon is selling a 2-in-1 laptop and tablet for $60 that comes with a 5-piece accessories bundle

It's great for everyday computing tasks.

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Sep 13 • 12:15 AM EDT • Technology • thestreet.com
Derrick Jones Jr.’s Future With Clippers Is Reportedly Safe

Derrick Jones Jr. could be a long-term piece for the Clippers after rumors circulated of him seeking a trade.

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Sep 12 • 8:27 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
The set-pieces: Real Madrid 4-1 Rayo Vallecano

Madrid’s set-piece shooting return was two attempts before the interval and four in the second half

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Sep 12 • 7:11 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
😐 Neutral (16%)
Baker Mayfield Holds Surprising Record Over Joe Burrow

Joe Burrow will look to change a surprising piece of history when the Bengals take on Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers in Week 1.

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Sep 12 • 3:09 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
On-loan Real Madrid star breaks Lionel Messi record

On-loan Real Madrid starlet Franco Mastantuono on Friday secured for himself a noteworthy piece of European football history. This came owing to his exploits in Fiorentina’s Serie A meeting with Ven...

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Sep 12 • 2:00 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Do Texas Rangers Have Enough Talent?

The Texas Rangers have some nice roster pieces, but is the team good enough to escape an average cycle of play?

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Sep 12 • 1:00 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Golden Knights lock down Mark Stone with new contract extension

Once again, the Vegas Golden Knights identified their biggest piece of business in the coming offseason and addressed it well beforehand.

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Sep 12 • 12:34 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Don’t forget about Bradley Chubb

The veteran acquisition can become an important piece on the Bills defense

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Sep 12 • 11:17 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Kings’ Acuff Jr. Predicted To Make All-Rookie 1st Team

Sacramento’s top pick prepares to lead a rebuilding roster, aiming to shatter franchise scoring records and outshine his peers as a definitive centerpiece for the Kings' future.

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Sep 12 • 10:45 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Germany’s Political Tailspin: Your Weekly SPIEGEL Recap

It might be tempting to dismiss the results of last Sunday’s state election in Saxony-Anhalt, in which the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party raked in 43.8 percent of the vote, as a rather unimportant extremist blip in a state that hardly anyone can find on the map. And you wouldn’t necessarily be wrong to do so. The state’s population – around 2.1 million – is a mere 2.5 percent of the German total. And while the state capital of Magdeburg was once the political heart of the Holy Roman Empire back when Otto the Great used to hang out there (more than a millenium … no … milennium … nope … millennium ago), it is today something of a backwater, albeit one with a ginormous cathedral in its center. We wanted to briefly interrupt this week’s newsletter to extend a heartfelt thank you to all of our subscribers, both new and old. And to remind you all that a free subscription gets you access to this newsletter every Saturday. A paid subscription, by contrast, gets you one DER SPIEGEL article every weekday, delivered to your inbox. We strive to select pieces that both demonstrate what Europe’s leading newsmagazine has to offer and provide an international audience – namely, you – with an insight into how Germany and Europe view the world. If you haven’t already signed up for a paid subscription, please consider doing so if you can. Our Substack channel relies entirely on reader support and we are excited to continue offering you the best of DER SPIEGEL. Subscribe But even beyond the fact that a huge percentage of the voters in the state decided to place an X next to a party with an ideological lineage that runs rather directly back to the right-wing extremist soup out of which the Nazi Party was born, the results are a perfect example of a phenomenon that has been plaguing German elections in recent years: the lack of an obvious path to a majority. Call it the Balkanization of German politics. There are a number of developments driving the phenomenon, but for the purposes of this newsletter, here are two of the most salient: Persistent voter frustration with the country’s two (former) big-tent parties – the Christian Democrats (CDU) on the center-right (17.2 percent in Saxony-Anhalt last Sunday) and the Social Democrats (SPD) on the center-left (9.3 percent). The presence of parties on the far left (Left Party), the populist left (the Sahra Wagenknecht Alliance – BSW) and the far right (AfD) with which mainstream parties are reluctant to form coalitions. So what happens now? Stories of the Week A Lack of Leadership The answer for many people in the country, and particularly within the CDU, is clear: pin (some of) the blame on Chancellor Friedrich Merz. According to a survey taken directly after the election in Saxony-Anhalt, 88 percent of respondents agreed with the statement that if the federal government in Berlin were doing a better job, the AfD wouldn’t be as strong. And it is true that the predominant impression of the federal government ever since Merz was sworn in on May 6, 2025, is one of ineffectiveness and bickering. His rather unique combination of bumbling-plus-bravado has also not exactly endeared him to the German public. Indeed, his standing in the country is so shaky that his popularity – according to recent polls – has now dropped even below the historic lows associated with his predecessor Olaf Scholz. The situation is such that the CDU even opted to keep him largely out of the campaign ahead of the Saxony-Anhalt vote. And since then, dissatisfied rumblings within the CDU have grown louder. DER SPIEGEL’s Swantje Karich notes that the problems with the CDU go much deeper than Merz. “The center-right has a trust problem. At a press appearance following the devastating election result in Saxony-Anhalt, Friedrich Merz said that the party wanted to ‘reach people more effectively’ through ‘emotional engagement.’ It sounded as though he were announcing a political program. On the basis of that statement, it is difficult to take his empathy seriously.” “The Chancellor’s chastened appearance did, at least, reveal where he stands: with his back to the wall. Elections will be held in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania next week, and the CDU could fare even worse there. The party is polling at between 8 and 10 percent in the state.” “What is at stake is the political tradition that has lent stability to the Federal Republic since 1945: a democratic conservatism that understands what must be preserved, but also how to embrace progress and openness to the world. If the Union continues along its current path, it risks becoming politically irrelevant after the 2029 federal election – and Germany could soon find itself with a government of the far right.” The Trumpification of Political Debate? It is often said in Germany that to understand the political and social trends that will soon be dominant in Europe, one need only look across the Atlantic to the United States. When it comes to political debate, that has certainly proven true. Donald Trump understood early on that triggering mouth-foaming outrage among Democrats is an ideal way to both generate headlines and to secure loyalty among supporters. And he realized that far more quickly than the left side of the political spectrum understood that simply ignoring the old man might be the best recipe. To be sure, there have been signs recently that the US president may be over-relying on the strategy. Earlier this week, in an apparent grandpa-discovers-AI moment, Trump sent out 60 posts in the space of 10 hours, many of them AI-assisted images portraying him as a hero – or showing Iceland as part of the US (outrageous!!!). It was also during that slew of schlock that he explicitly backed the AfD with an “MGGA” post. In Germany, though, the outrage cycle remains in full swing, with much of the focus on those who would dare to vote for the AfD. They are alternately portrayed as being dim-witted, ungrateful, backward, racist or all of the above. That, argues DER SPIEGEL columnist Sabine Rennefanz, is not particularly helpful. “Everywhere on election night, people spoke of a watershed moment, a rupture, a turning point. But what is that supposed to mean in concrete terms? A watershed would imply an interruption, a moment of pause – perhaps even a willingness to rethink and learn. At first, there was little sign of that in the main television panels. Instead, the familiar rituals that had already shaped the election campaign continued: outrage, lecturing and abuse.” “That’s just the tone, one might object. They’re only talk shows. Given that the party’s state branch has been classified by domestic intelligence officials as confirmed right-wing extremist, there are more important problems than hurt feelings on television. Yet although the condescending tone is not the cause of the AfD’s success, it is an expression of the broader mood within the so-called political center – a kind of institutional blindness that too often treats material concerns as a communications problem.” “People have a pretty good sense of whether you like them – whether you approach them with curiosity or merely study, lecture and manage them as a problem group. They notice whether you genuinely want to understand their fears and pain, or whether you are simply waiting for the chance to correct them. They can also tell whether someone still has the energy to change things, or whether they have barricaded themselves behind platitudes and empty phrases.” “Anyone who wants an egalitarian democratic society cannot promise equality only to those whose language, tastes and moral convictions they share. They must also acknowledge the wounds, resentments and fears of those whose political conclusions they consider wrong. Acknowledging them does not mean agreeing with them. But a democracy that communicates with almost half its citizens only through warnings and labels gives up on political debate before it has even begun. An atmosphere must be created in which people can express their opinions without fearing that they will be canceled. We are currently a long way from that.” East-West? One of the clear undercurrents in the election last Sunday was, of course, Germany’s ongoing east-west divide, particularly as it pertains to the success of the AfD. Historically, the party has been far stronger in the former East German states than in former West German states. The fact that this generalization no longer reliably holds is certainly one of the primary concerns that many have about the party’s growth. And yet, there is still a distinct flavor of “stupid easterners, they don’t understand democracy” to the coverage. In the weeks before the vote, there was even a rather interesting back-and-forth in Germany’s culture pages about how ungrateful eastern Germans allegedly are for being pulled out of their pre-reunification backwardness and into the light of the West. DER SPIEGEL’s Jochen-Martin Gutsch has had enough. “Ten years ago, in 2016, elections were also held in Saxony-Anhalt. The AfD won more than 20 percent, which at the time rightly provoked outrage and incomprehension in western Germany. Today, in 2026, the AfD is also polling at around 20 percent in western German states, but this no longer provokes outrage and incomprehension. Instead, it is now regarded as proof of democratic conviction and civilizational resistance. After all, in the east, it’s 40 percent!” “This allows people to continue feeling morally superior to the East, but the wiser course would be to admit: if something doesn’t happen soon, the West will turn AfD-blue too. Or bluish.” “But will anything happen? The truly depressing thing about election night was not so much the AfD leaders intoxicated by their own success. It was the representatives of the other parties, who once again said that they were utterly shocked, needed some time to digest the result and would, of course, not simply return to business as usual. The SPD, a former big-tent party, celebrated its ‘stable’ result of 9.3 percent. Congratulations!” “For 10 years, the AfD has gone from one electoral success to the next. And still, the established parties remain ‘shocked’ and scratch their heads in astonishment. How long can they keep being shocked? Friedrich Merz says he may need to communicate his reform ideas in a more ‘emotional’ way. So the CDU’s political professionals sit down together after the election, mull over a strategy, and in the end come up with this: Fritz, try to be a little more relaxed, charismatic and emotional – or something. Beyond that: no political plan, no defiance, no promise of a future. That is frightening.” What was good, what was bad for democracy? Good: Voter turnout in Saxony-Anhalt was 77.8 percent, the highest ever recorded in the state. Whatever one thinks of the result, that figure is encouraging. Democracy needs citizens to take an interest. Bad: Although a strong AfD result had been expected in Saxony-Anhalt, many politicians from the mainstream parties – including in Berlin – appeared confused, helpless and overwhelmed in their initial reactions. That is not how they will win back voters’ trust. Last Week’s Highlights: 🗳️ Meet the Germans Who Voted for the AfD: Why would voters in a country like Germany, with its Nazi past, vote for a right-wing party? It’s a question only an editor in Berlin could come up with. On the ground, the view is different. 🟦 How the AfD Wants to Expand Its Power Across Germany: The far-right AfD is planning to decimate public broadcasting in Saxony-Anhalt, revamp education and install extremists in positions of power. And it is eyeing victory on the national stage as well. 🕯️ The Continuing Reverberations of September 11: It was a generational shock, and the consequences can still be felt today - from massive surveillance and significant increases in presidential power to violent excesses at ICE. 🤝 “For Europe, Canada Is the Preferred Partner in Trans-Atlantic Relations”: In an interview with DER SPIEGEL, Canadian Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne discusses his country’s failed trade deal with the US and why Canada is looking to Europe. 🏛️ The True Historical Roots of the AfD: During the Weimar Republic in the 1920s, there were numerous parties on the extreme right espousing “Germany first” nationalism. The Nazis may not be the best comparison for today’s AfD. 🌊 AfD in a Landslide: Merz Is the Wrong Leader for Germany: The right-wing Alternative for Germany won in a landslide in Saxony-Anhalt state elections on Sunday. What does that mean for the country at large? Thank you for your continued support and have a wonderful week! Subscribe Share Leave a comment Your SPIEGEL Substack Team Compiled and edited by Charles Hawley

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Sep 12 • 7:49 AM EDT • Politics • derspiegel.substack.com
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World Trade Center Steel Arrives at Capital Health on 25th anniversary of Sept. 11

Fire, police, and emergency personnel meet to discuss the procession and ceremony to Capital Health Medical Center where a piece of the World Trade Center

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Sep 12 • 6:01 AM EDT • Health • mercerme.com
El-Sayed ignites firestorm after sharing 9/11 message on social media: 'Piece of sh--'

Abdul El-Sayed's 9/11 video message drew fierce online backlash over his association with Hasan Piker, who notoriously claimed America deserved 9/11.

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Sep 11 • 8:11 PM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com
Late goals in Ried bring a point apiece

1-1 draw after chances missedIn a match that our Red Bulls controlled for long spells - creating a clear advantage in terms of chances - a late goal from substitute Karim Konate seemed to have secured...

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Sep 11 • 4:00 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Science World selling pieces of Vancouver's giant FIFA soccer ball at an expensive price

Science World's FIFA World Cup soccer ball design will soon be gone forever. Or maybe not. Pieces of it are up for sale.

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Sep 11 • 3:17 PM EDT • Science • dailyhive.com
Patriots Add Former Bills Starter in $6M Deal: Report

The New England Patriots are expected to sign veteran defensive tackle DaQuan Jones. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported this Friday afternoon.Jones most recently played for the Buffalo Bills last season. He recorded 22 tackles, three sacks, a forced fumble, an interception, and 21 pass rush pressures. He was a valuable depth piece for a loaded […] The post Patriots Add Former Bills Starter in $6M Deal: Report appeared first on HEAVY.

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Sep 11 • 2:44 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Pirates Roster Moves: O’Hearn Back From Injury

The Pirates are getting a key piece of their lineup back on Friday as first baseman/outfielder Ryan O’Hearn has been […]

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Sep 11 • 11:22 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Beyoncé, Taylor Swift and Elton John have worn his designs. Now he's opened on Magazine Street.

This British-born designer is bringing his trademark sparkly, sequined pieces to New Orleans. “In New Orleans, anything goes," said the British-born designer. "I feel like there’s a lot more freedom for people to dress up, it’s almost expected.”

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Sep 11 • 11:00 AM EDT • Business • nola.com
Scientists Think Flipping a Single Switch in Your Body Could Slow Down Aging

Aging is a complicated puzzle, but one of its biggest pieces might be a receptor that fails to clear away damaged, senescent cells.

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Sep 11 • 9:00 AM EDT • Science • popularmechanics.com
Postpartum politics: What it means to run for government as a new mum

Victorian Greens candidates Nina Crawley and Lini Fernando reflect on their experiences running a political campaign just months after giving birth. From the challenges and compromises to the support networks that wrapped around them, and why showing up vulnerably in public space matters. Subscribe In 2024, when my second child was four months old, I decided to run for local government. Fast forward two years, I am again four months postpartum, with my third child, and this time running in the state election. But this time has hit differently. Going through pregnancy, birth and postpartum while being a political candidate has had a more profound and personal impact than I ever expected. I reached out to my fellow Greens candidate for the state election, Lini Fernando, who gave birth 20 days before me, and her experience closely mirrored mine. Postpartum has its own unique challenges that we’ve not seen reflected in stories about women running for office. When people discuss the “juggle”, they’re usually talking about the practical mechanics of looking after small children - childcare arrangements, pumping schedules and logistics. As mums of multiple children, we were both aware of the logistical changes and difficulties that accompany giving birth and the months after. We assumed that combining this with running for election would be hard, but that we could organise our way out of any problems. What neither of us anticipated was the intense vulnerability that comes with putting yourself into the spotlight of a state election campaign at a time when you are physically exhausted and navigating things like breastfeeding and feeling like a stranger in your own body. There have been challenges that neither of us anticipated. Firstly, needing to buy new clothes because the supportive leggings that are a staple of the postpartum wardrobe weren’t going to cut it for community events. Lini held her first fundraiser - a trivia night - just three weeks postpartum. A business-casual wardrobe, several sizes bigger than pre-baby, was needed, and fast. As women, how we look is closely scrutinised, and the internalised fatphobia is loud. We are conditioned from our earliest days to believe that our appearance is tied to our worth, and taught how we are allowed to show up in public. Women who dare to put themselves into the spotlight also receive more abuse than their male counterparts, including criticism of their appearance. To stand in front of members of your community and try to convince them that you’re the best person to represent them in parliament is a challenge in and of itself. To do it with leaking breasts, a pelvic floor that could betray you at the first sign of a sneeze, a body that still feels unfamiliar, and with half your hair falling out (hello postpartum hair loss!) is another thing altogether. It requires courage, allowing yourself the grace to be vulnerable in public, and the belief that showing up, however imperfectly, matters. And the vulnerability isn’t just physical; it also includes factors like having to ask a campaign team to accommodate the realities of having a baby. Asking for help is hard, and it’s a skill that both new parents and hopeful political candidates need to become comfortable with. Parents understand the disappointment that comes when a call for help or connection is rebuffed, like a friend cancelling a much-needed coffee. That rejection is amplified for political candidates calling dozens of people each week. Many people don’t realise running for Parliament, when you aren’t the incumbent, is a volunteer role supported largely by other volunteers who have to squeeze volunteering in around their paid work. Calls need to be made and meetings held after work hours - usually during “witching hour” (5-8 pm), that special time of night when babies cry for no reason. I found that I was struggling to make these commitments, or having to tap out and ask for them to be rearranged. When I spoke to Lini, we realised that she had had a similar experience, this push-pull of being the candidate and wanting to show our faces at meetings and help recruit new volunteers at ‘calling parties’, but also being the only people who could settle our newborns. Sometimes we could merge the two worlds; Lini and I realised that we had both attended 7:30pm meetings online, sitting in a dark room, struggling though breastfeeding and settling our babies. Although we’re both committed to breaking the stigma around breastfeeding, it can be hard to keep your composure while trying to feed a young baby as they try to latch, spew and fuss. Ultimately, Lini and I agreed that showing up vulnerably in public space matters. Leaders should possess empathy and understanding for those who feel raw and in transition; from the dad who just got evicted to the teen who acquired a disability - anyone who feels they aren’t the version of themselves they expected right now. The patriarchy tries to tell us otherwise, but women shouldn’t have to wait until they’re ‘recovered’, no longer vulnerable, before they feel entitled to participate in public life. In fact, we could all benefit from our leaders being a little more vulnerable. *This piece was cowritten, but has been presented in the first person for the sake of style. About the authors Nina Crawley is former teacher and community organiser who now works in human rights and inequality advocacy for a non-profit. She’s a mother of three keen to get back to running as soon as her pelvic floor allows! She’s contesting the seat of Ivanhoe for the Greens in this year’s state election. Lini Fernando is a lawyer working in diverse areas of law including anti corruption and public law. She’s a mother of two and a gardening and good policy enthusiast. She is currently contesting the seat of Croydon for the Greens in this year’s state election. Thanks for reading Cheek Media Co. ! This post is public so feel free to share it. Share

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Sep 10 • 10:31 PM EDT • Politics • cheekmedia.substack.com
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String of break-ins, vandalization reported at Anchorage businesses

Several businesses were broken into early Wednesday morning in a northeast Anchorage business district, leaving owners to pick up the pieces.

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Sep 10 • 8:20 PM EDT • Business • alaskasnewssource.com
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Possible Google device at FCC could be Wear OS-powered fitness tracker

A new piece of hardware passed through FCC certification today and the evidence points to it being a Wear OS-powered device made by Google.

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Sep 10 • 5:41 PM EDT • Technology • 9to5google.com
The Not-So-Secret Winner in Netflix and YouTube’s Streaming Wars Battle

(Welcome to the “Most Important Story of the Week”, my bi-weekly strategy column analyzing the most important (but often not buzziest) news story of the last two weeks. I’m the Entertainment Strategy Guy, a former streaming executive who now analyzes business strategy in the entertainment industry. Please subscribe.) Here’s a good piece of advice: when someone tells you a company has “won” the streaming wars, just assume they haven’t. Remember the narratives about the streaming media over the last few years: 2024 - Netflix has won the streaming wars! 2025 - YouTube has won the streaming wars! Yet…in 2026, I’d categorize it as… 2026 - Netflix and YouTube are battling for talent! Netflix and YouTube are aggressively fighting for top creators, marking a fierce new battle in the streaming wars. For two companies that “won”, that certainly doesn’t seem like winning behavior. If you win, you don’t have to fight for talent, because talent has to come to you. This is a good reminder that, if the streaming wars are a war—and I think they are—we should know what type of war they are. So it’s worth revisiting one of my big theories of the streaming wars, that the war these battles most represent is… The Thirty Years’ War1 I prefer this war to other, simpler wars, because, while it featured two “sides”—based on religion—and the current war has two main sides—tech versus entertainment—it also featured a lot of smaller players battling it out, sometimes switching sides. And that’s still the case for entertainment and media, despite the above headlines. I’d recommend this truism: if someone has to tell you they won the streaming wars, they probably haven’t. To wit, if someone told you they were fighting in the Thirty Years’ War—and no, they didn’t call it that at the time—and in year five, they told you they won, well, obviously they had 25 more years to go. That’s a lot of preamble to say, the story of the week is the latest battles between YouTube and Netflix. Their battle for talent says a lot about how hard this war will be to win. All that, plus The Curse of the Mogul in action, Netflix providing more (theatrical) data, whether Apple TV is in trouble, AMC getting in on distribution, and a whole lot more. Subscribe Today’s article is sponsored by… Substack is hosting a live Emmys watch party, starting at 5PM on the East Coast (2PM on the West Coast) on Monday, 14-Sep. Check it out! Tune In Most Important Story of the Week - Who’s the Big Winner in the Netflix vs YouTube Showdown? Netflix spent a lot in 2025, and then even more in 2026 adding a host of “creators”—both podcasters and YouTube stars—to their TV lineup. Frankly, for years, I’ve thought that more major studios/streamers/channels should look to YouTube as the launching pad for future stars and IP. Either by poaching proven talent—albeit at good prices—or by treating YouTube as an arena for your “A&R” reps to scout new talent and emerging voices. Netflix started executing the former strategy—which I thought was smart—while Focus Features did the latter with Obsession. So what changed? YouTube finally responded! Yikes. That’s a strong response, and stronger than I’d argue most narratives about YouTube suggest. People often describe YouTube as a self-reinforcing flywheel of success. Get on YouTube or perish. So why did YouTube have to respond? Because other folks poaching their top talent could really damage their business, implying their flywheel is a pinch more rickety than most analysis suggests. Clearly, creators can envision a life off YouTube and potentially a much more lucrative one. The Curse of the Media Mogul is Playing Out In Real Time We’re just getting started with this issue, but the rest is for paid subscribers of the Entertainment Strategy Guy, so if you’d like to find out… Who is the big winner in the Netflix versus YouTube battle… The biggest question about YouTube… Plus why YouTube’s saber rattling should worry talent… Why I’m skeptical that a U.S. federal tax credit for film will happen… What key change could pull Apple from the streaming business. AMC getting in on distribution… Some great reads on the Warner Bros.-Paramount merger... And a whole lot more... ...please subscribe! We can only keep doing this great work with your support.

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Sep 10 • 5:34 PM EDT • Entertainment • entertainment.substack.com
Can Trump Buy Back Americans’ Love at $5,000 a Piece? Guess We’ll Find Out.

There's a trillion dollars—and a big election upset—between Trump's promise and voters' pocketbooks, but it's something new.

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Sep 10 • 1:21 PM EDT • Politics • slate.com
Nintendo Offers Rare Discounts For American Customers—Thanks To Tariff Refunds, Company Says

Nintendo is one of more than 80 companies facing lawsuits from customers who want to see a piece of the federal tariff refunds given by the government.

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Sep 10 • 12:25 PM EDT • Technology • forbes.com
How should the Red Sox set up their playoff rotation?

The chess game hasn’t started yet, but it appears the pieces are already being assembled on the board.

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Sep 10 • 7:22 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Want to buy an iconic piece of Wichita? This bar with 1935 roots is for sale.

Sabrina Parker, the longtime owner of Merle’s Place at 440 N. Seneca, wants to sell the business and its 1935 building.

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Sep 10 • 5:08 AM EDT • Business • kansas.com
Statuary brings recognition to businesses

An oversized rooster, a towering sasquatch, or a massive metal eagle might seem like unconventional marketing investments, but Mike Ferguson, owner of Spokane-based Way Out West, has spent over two decades supplying Inland Northwest businesses with statues and large outdoor pieces that are helping turn companies into recognizable landmarks.

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Sep 10 • 3:00 AM EDT • Business • spokanejournal.com
Academy Sports (ASO) Rockets 14% on Solid Q2 Despite Consumer Spending Tests

Academy Sports and Outdoors Inc. (NASDAQ:ASO) saw its share price jump by 14.40 percent on Wednesday to close at $51.15 apiece after posting a strong earnings performance in the second quarter of the year despite weakness in consumer spending trends. In an earnings call on the same day, the sporting goods store chain said that […]

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Sep 9 • 8:47 PM EDT • Sports • finance.yahoo.com
Viewpoint: Unlocking Europe’s wildfire data

Europe is already investing in the science, technology and infrastructure needed to understand, prevent and fight wildfires. Copernicus provides satellite-based Earth observation and environmental information, while the European Forest Fire Information System provides information on fire danger and forest fires across Europe. Weather and climate systems add forecasts of heat, drought, wind and humidity; historical fire databases show where fires have occurred; and researchers generate increasingly detailed knowledge about fuels, fire behaviour, forecasting, modelling and risk management. Meanwhile, new European research projects are adding digital twins and other tools to this growing ecosystem.However, these data do not necessarily sit together, nor are they necessarily described, structured or governed in ways that allow them to be used together. Much of the information is public, but some is commercially held. Some is sensitive. Some is subject to legal, security or operational restrictions. Even when data can be legally accessed, different systems may use different formats, terminology and rules.Europe therefore faces an unusual paradox: we have vast amounts of relevant information to respond to the wildfire challenge, but not the means to bring it together. For example, a wildfire researcher or emergency service might need to ask whether a particular combination of vegetation, drought, wind and topography has historically been associated with rapid fire spread. The relevant information may exist in several institutions, using different systems and subject to different conditions of access.The challenge is to conduct an authorised analysis that interacts with these sources, combines the results and respects the rules imposed by each data custodian.An important part of the answer can be found in the Fair principles, the idea that data should be findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable. Developed more than a decade ago, these principles have become a central reference point for modern data stewardship, making it easier for people and machines to find data, understand what it means and determine whether it can be reused.Readability by machines is essential, since AI systems will be key to meeting the data challenge. Bring analysis to the dataThe proposition is not to give an AI system unrestricted access to sensitive databases. Quite the opposite. The goal is to make it possible for approved algorithms to go to the data, rather than requiring sensitive data or large datasets to be copied to wherever the analysis happens.Imagine an analysis asking a series of questions of different data stations. At one station it might examine weather and climate data; at another, historical fire records; at another, experimental measurements of fire behaviour. The algorithm does not need to download everything. It can operate within the environment permitted by each data custodian and return only the results that the rules allow to leave.This is sometimes described as data visiting, and related approaches already exist in areas such as federated analysis and federated learning.Sensitive data should therefore not be treated as a free-for-all for machines. This requires appropriate governance at multiple levels. Access needs to be authenticated and authorised. The purpose of an analysis should be defined. The code or model being run should be controlled. Data custodians should be able to specify what can be queried and what results can leave their environment. Activities should be auditable and human oversight should remain where the consequences require it.In other words, the objective is not to trust AI with the data. It is to design systems in which AI never has more access than it needs.As open as possible, as closed as necessaryFair data should also not be confused with open data. Some wildfire data should be openly available. Other information may legitimately need to remain restricted because it concerns critical infrastructure, security, commercial interests, privacy or operational capabilities. The principle should be: as open as possible, as closed as necessary.The important point is that restricted data should not automatically become unusable data. If machines can discover what information exists, understand its meaning, establish where it came from and determine the conditions under which it can be used, authorised analyses can potentially be carried out without the underlying data ever leaving the environment in which it is protected.Restricted data can still be Fair and machine-actionable.This is also an important question of data sovereignty. European institutions should not have to surrender control of their data to a handful of technology platforms in order to benefit from AI. Nor does Europe need to start again by building one giant repository for every piece of wildfire information. The better approach is to connect what already exists.This is the principle behind emerging approaches such as Tryangle, developed through the Leiden Initiative for Fair and Equitable Science. Rather than creating another centralised data warehouse, the approach seeks to provide an interoperable layer through which approved algorithms can visit distributed data sources while respecting the rules of their custodians.In this way, a data station can remain where it is. Its custodians can retain control. Existing databases and applications do not have to be abandoned. What changes is their ability to communicate with other systems through common, machine-readable descriptions, access rules and interoperability mechanisms.But approaches like this need data that meets the Fair principles. Only then can an interoperable ecosystem safely begin to turn fragmented information into collective intelligence.Data infrastructure is wildfire infrastructureThe implications of this approach are entirely practical. Firefighters could gain better intelligence about local and evolving risks. Land managers could test prevention strategies using more comprehensive information about fuels, weather and past fires. Researchers could compare evidence across ecosystems without repeatedly moving huge datasets between institutions. Smaller regions and resource-constrained teams could access analytical capabilities without having to build large data infrastructures themselves.Europe is already investing heavily in satellites, databases, research programmes, forecasting systems and scientific expertise. The question is whether we will connect those investments well enough to turn them into actionable intelligence.That requires policymakers and funders to treat data infrastructure as seriously as physical infrastructure. Data generated or supported through European public funding should be Fair, verifiable and machine actionable by design, wherever legally and ethically possible.Related articlesData Corner: Europe’s burning need for wildfire mitigation researchClimate monitoring must remain a global enterprise, experts sayIn practice, that means funding not only the production of data, but also the infrastructure that makes data usable across systems: metadata, provenance, interoperability, access mechanisms and governance. Where data must remain restricted, we should ensure that it can still be securely discovered, verified and used for authorised analysis.Initiatives such as the European Open Science Cloud offer an existing framework through which these principles can be put into practice. What is needed now is to accelerate implementation and make them a standard part of how Europe funds and builds research and innovation systems.We do not need another generation of disconnected databases. The data is already there. The opportunity is to make it work together, securely, responsibly and quickly enough to help prevent the next fire, rather than simply document the last one.Jean-Claude Burgelman is professor emeritus at the Free University of Brussels (VUB) and editor-in-chief at Frontiers Policy Lab. For more than 20 years he held leading roles in research and innovation policy at the European Commission.

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Sep 9 • 8:00 PM EDT • Science • sciencebusiness.net
Seahawks' Nick Emmanwori out for Super Bowl rematch against Patriots

The Seahawks will be without a key piece of their defense as they launch their Super Bowl repeat bid against the Patriots.

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Sep 9 • 7:33 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Brewers’ Misiorowski Reaches Unprecedented Velocity Milestone

Jacob Misiorowski shattered records by surpassing 1,000 triple-digit pitches this season, cementing his status as a dominant rotation centerpiece for the Milwaukee Brewers.

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Sep 9 • 5:00 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Will Chargers Really Have RB By Committee Approach?

Mike McDaniel has made it clear the Chargers will use all three running backs, but that doesn’t mean the workload should be equal. If Omarion Hampton is who the Chargers believe he can be, he should quickly emerge as the clear centerpiece of this backfield.

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Sep 9 • 2:00 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Drew Anderson just gave Tigers a $10 million decision

Drew Anderson has gone from a flexible bullpen arm to a legitimate piece of Detroit’s rotation. Now the Tigers must determine whether that transformation is worth exercising his $10 million club option for 2027.

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Sep 9 • 12:25 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
The Lucas Museum's approach to curation courts controversy

The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is challenging art-world hierarchies by placing commercial art, comics and pop culture works in conversation with pieces by Frida Kahlo, Mary Cassatt, Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh and more.

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Sep 9 • 6:00 AM EDT • Entertainment • latimes.com
Ex-Philadelphia Phillies Player Cut Loose By New MLB Team

As the Philadelphia Phillies are currently taking on the Houston Astros in a new series this week, a piece of notable roster news dropped on a recent Phillies player. Phillies fans shouldn’t have forgotten by outfielder Max Kepler yet, as Kepler played his entire 2025 season with Philadelphia. Well, on Tuesday, Kepler was released by […] The post Ex-Philadelphia Phillies Player Cut Loose By New MLB Team appeared first on HEAVY.

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Sep 9 • 2:06 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
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Prep sports recap for Sept. 8, 2026

PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD/WYZZ) — Now there’s only one undefeated soccer team in the Big 12 Conference. Gavin Stickelmaier and Cal Byrkit scored two goals apiece as Notre Dame beat visiting Champaign Central, 6-0, in the Big 12 opener for both schools on Tuesday. The Irish (4-0) handed the Maroons (2-1-1) their first loss of the […]

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Sep 9 • 12:14 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Iowa State volleyball swept by Iowa

Iowa State suffered a straight-sets loss to in-state rival Iowa on Tuesday night, falling 25-20, 25-21, 25-23. The Cyclones dropped to 4-2 on the season with the defeat, while the Hawkeyes improved to 4-2. Pam McCune, Mesaiya Bettis, and Nayeli Gonzalez paced the Iowa State attack with eight kills apiece. Alea Goolsby and Nayeli Ti’a […]

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Sep 8 • 10:23 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
The set-pieces: Real Madrid 2-1 Inter

Madrid won the first contact from two of their seven deliveries and generated four shots, three of them in the second phase

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Sep 8 • 6:26 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Writer makes bold prediction regarding a Browns rookie

Taylen Green could become an important piece for the Browns in 2026.

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Sep 8 • 10:22 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Writer shares key fantasy piece regarding Quinshon Judkins

Quinshon Judkins is going to be a factor in fantasy lineups in 2026.

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Sep 8 • 10:12 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
We can’t afford to learn the wrong lesson from the Lindsay Clancy trial

"Better coordination may not prevent every tragedy, but in high-risk care it is essential," writes Lauren Hajjar. "A collection of services is not the same as a system of care, and a person in crisis should not be responsible for connecting the pieces."

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Sep 8 • 1:03 AM EDT • Health • wbur.org
New York Yankees Reinstate Reigning MVP

The New York Yankees are getting a big piece back in their lineup. Three-time MVP Aaron Judge has been reinstated from the 60-day injured list. The organization made the announcement on Monday evening. Judge Returns to the Yankees Today, the Yankees made the following roster moves: • Reinstated OF Aaron Judge (#99) from the 60-day …

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Sep 7 • 8:55 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Blaze destroys A340-300 centrepiece of Turkish aeronautical science park

Converted ex-Turkish Airlines airframe opened as interactive aviation technology exhibit less than a year ago.

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Sep 7 • 5:20 PM EDT • Science • flightglobal.com
Giants Acquire Former Packers Defender Before Week 1

The New York Giants have added another piece to their defense.

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Sep 7 • 1:28 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Dan Campbell Provides Advice for Western Michigan

Dan Campbell stayed away from debating Michigan's controversial finish against Western Michigan, but the Lions coach did offer the Broncos one simple piece of advice.

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Sep 7 • 12:00 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Real Madrid’s Problems Vs Real Betis, In Detail

Two versions of Real Madrid faced Real Betis at La Cartuja Stadium. The first one was wasteful in front of the goalkeeper, whereas the second was constrained and without solutions. In the first half, Real Madrid created goal-scoring chances relying on versatile approaches: counterattacks, set pieces, and settled possession. Off the ball, Manuel Pellegrini’s team […]

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Sep 6 • 8:14 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Scientists recreated an ancient Chinese bronze-casting technique with 3D printing; a process that took weeks now takes under 40 hours

Researchers have recreated the logic of an ancient Chinese bronze-casting technique with digital modelling, 3D printing and substitute materials, cutting a process that traditionally takes weeks to less than 40 hours. The study focused on ‘piece-mold casting,’ a distinctive method used to produce ritual bronzes during China’s Shang and Zhou dynasties.

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Sep 6 • 7:30 PM EDT • Science • timesofindia.indiatimes.com
The core anti-Pangram constituency is phony writers

Welcome to The Closing Argument, our verdict on the news, plus everything The Argument published and appeared in this week. The Verdict, by Kelsey Piper A lot of people hate AI for drowning the internet in slop and displacing human creatives. You might think that these people would be thrilled by a program that can identify and flag AI-generated work. But many people who hate AI also hate Pangram, an impressively accurate AI detector that produces very few false positives, according to high-quality independent research. This loathing found its most recent expression in a bizarre Wired article that amplifies a wide range of false arguments from Pangram skeptics: that AI detectors are racist (they’re not) or ableist (they’re not)1 or don’t work (this one does)2. Rather than starting from the premise that it would be really valuable to have a working AI detector and scrutinizing Pangram to make sure it lives up to that promise, the article starts from the premise that Pangram obviously has bad vibes and sets out to discover why. (One answer: The CEO microwaved lunch during an interview!) Why aren’t writers who resent Pangram more eager to distinguish themselves from posters who are having ChatGPT ghostwrite all their work? There are a few different things at play, but I think one key dynamic is this: These are often the same people. A core constituency for arguments like Wired’s is “writers” who are using AI to write their posts but resent this fact being made public. They stand to lose from AI detectors because AI detectors call them out. Share When Substack announced a partnership with Pangram, a sizable fraction of the platform’s authors rose up in outrage. Some people had experience with other AI detectors that didn’t work, and some felt that AI writing ought to be encouraged — both of which are fair enough. But the fury was fueled by authors passionately insisting that Pangram kept wrongly accusing them on almost every post they published. Pangram can be wrong, especially on short passages. But in the overwhelming majority of cases where Pangram looked at a whole blog post rather than a single paragraph, the program correctly detected work as AI. Even if we can’t be 100% sure in any individual case, we can notice the trend in the aggregate. Wired quotes Sam Illingworth, a professor of critical AI literacy at Edinburgh Napier University, who said, “I don’t think [AI detectors] work. … I think that detectors are prejudiced against certain people.” This spring, he said that he used AI for research and editing; this summer he acknowledged that in addition to research and editing, he also uses it “now and then for a turn of phrase I keep.” Pangram informs us that most of his posts are 100% AI-written (some are mixed AI-and-human) and that 100% AI-written posts started appearing last year. The favorable interpretation is that, as someone whose recent work Pangram consistently mistakes for AI, Illingworth sees Pangram’s flaws firsthand. The unfavorable interpretation is that the tool’s credibility trades off against his own, because its account of who writes his posts is not consistent with his. Illingworth is not alone in insisting the detector does not work. “It’s a Monday night in late July, and I’m pasting my own Substack draft into an AI detector for the first time. Not because I’m worried. Because I’m curious. I wrote every word of it myself, the way I write everything, out loud in my head first, in a rhythm that still carries the accent of a language I learned to think in before I learned to write in this one,” begins one Substack post by an author indignant that Pangram flags her writing as AI. “That’s the part I had to sit with before I could write this.” If you, like me, have worked with AIs a lot, you won’t even need Pangram there. The author of that piece is AI. It is obviously AI! I checked 10 other posts on the blog, and they were also obviously AI! “I have spent 22 years as an award-winning author and essayist. And now this bullshit tool that learned from MY writing is going to accuse me of plagiarism,” popular Substack writer Carlyn Beccia wrote in an anti-Pangram post. “For the last and final time, AI DETECTORS DO NOT WORK.” Here’s what her writing sounded like in 2020: “Most success stories revolve around one person who believed enough in you to say — give it a try. We call these people muses, but they are so much more than that. They are the strong man giants whose shoulders we stand on so we can see the horizon. Throughout the editing process, I am sure my editor felt less like a giant of greatness and more like Atlas with the world on her shoulders.” Pangram says it was 100% human-written. (So were other articles of hers in 2020.) And here’s what it sounds like now: “And then there is the reshuffling, which sounds like paperwork until you remember that empires have always loved paperwork. The Trump regime recently moved special education oversight from the Education Department to HHS. That is not a minor bureaucratic transfer. It changes the frame.”3 Pangram says this is mostly AI. I am not convinced that Pangram is wrong. In my own experience, Pangram is very effective on long texts — if it marks a long essay as AI, the essay was either written by AI or deliberately written to sound like AI. On tweet-length or paragraph-length texts, it’s not perfectly reliable. It seems to work just as well for non-native English speakers as for native speakers. While I have seen dozens of claims of pre-2022 text returning a positive result on Pangram, I have tried repeatedly to corroborate those and have never once succeeded. To be clear, I’m absolutely not saying that complaining about Pangram suggests a writer is a cheat. There are plenty of other concerns. Most are mistakenly premised, such as the false claim that Pangram trains on work you put into it, but others are reasonable: It’s unreliable on sufficiently short text segments; it creates an internet witch-hunt mentality when there are defensible uses of AI; people who are open about their AI use are sometimes blamed, when the only people really doing something wrong are the ones who hide it; and it isn’t perfect, so a single positive result shouldn’t be taken as decisive proof of misconduct. I’m happy to concede that Pangram is imperfect and possible to over-rely on. If an author’s posts are mostly non-AI and one scans as partially AI, this could be a mistake. It’s also possible to defeat Pangram with intentional effort. If you think we need something more robust and more reliable, fine! But if you don’t like AI and don’t like Pangram, your attitude really ought to be that it’s a shame that our existing tools for AI detection are imperfect, and it’s important to invent better ones. If your stance is instead that AI is evil and so is looking for AI, then ultimately you’re contributing to the sloppification of the internet. You’re making it harder for people who write their own text to distinguish themselves, and providing cover for authors who are definitely not writing their own text. Subscribe Top stories this week, by Kobe Yank-Jacobs Commentators often worry that the decline of reading could mean the decline of liberal democracy — but deliberative governance actually predated widespread literacy. This week, Maibritt Henkel pointed out that many liberal cultures thrive on a culture of raucous, interactive debate, which can happen in-person as easily, if not more so, than in text. Read on, dear reader, to learn more. It may actually cheer you up: [ ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/reading-wont-save-liberalism) [ Reading won’t save liberalism ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/reading-wont-save-liberalism) Maibritt Henkel · Sep 1 [ Read full story ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/reading-wont-save-liberalism) It used to be bad to downplay climate change (if we mean denying its reality). Today, it’s actually good to downplay climate change (if we mean keeping the issue out of political fights so we can make real progress). This counterintuitive view is called “climate hushing,” and contributor Alex Trembath argued that it’s the key to enacting good policy going forward. Get up to speed on the latest in climate politics: [ ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/we-wont-stop-climate-change-by-talking) [ We won’t stop climate change by talking about it ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/we-wont-stop-climate-change-by-talking) Alex Trembath · Sep 2 [ Read full story ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/we-wont-stop-climate-change-by-talking) Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney is standing up for the forces of liberalism against Donald Trump’s assault on our closest ally. So, why is one prominent left-wing commenter attacking Carney? Columnist Matthew Yglesias explains: [ ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/when-economic-liberty-means-central) [ When "economic liberty" means central planning ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/when-economic-liberty-means-central) Matthew Yglesias · Aug 31 [ Read full story ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/when-economic-liberty-means-central) 🌟Abundance Wins of the Week🌟 Shout out to my home state of California, whose legislature passed two housing bills this week. One requires a housing density minimum in transit-oriented areas of the state’s most transit-rich cities (Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose, San Diego, and Long Beach). Another bill closes two common loopholes used by third parties to delay housing projects, including an opportunity to challenge maps of a given lot created by the developer after a project has been approved. Shout out to our big-state rival, Texas, where pro-housing SB 785 took effect this week. The new state law requires municipalities to have at least one district permitted for manufactured housing without a special permit. This will promote zoning changes in 44% of municipalities. The company Fervo Energy signed a deal with Google for what is set to be the world’s largest enhanced geothermal facility, proving a technology can work at a scale that could be crucial to a decarbonized, energy-abundant economy. Share Worth watching… This week, forecasting legend Nate Silver joined Jerusalem, Matt, and Jeremiah on a crowded episode of the pod. It was a party. And speaking of parties, our round table debated the factional lines within the Democratic Party: Is it possible to be center-left and also anti-establishment? Watch or listen to find out: The Rio Grande Valley in Texas is one of the areas that swung hardest toward Trump in 2024, but musician Bobby Pulido is running to flip it back. Right now, The Argument/Split Ticket’s model has him running 1.1 points behind his Republican opponent in a district Trump won by 18 points. Tune in to find out how he differs from national Democrats and what he thinks he can to do win this seat. On Thursday, Bernie Sanders was among the first politicians to call for a ban on superintelligence. My guest this week, Andrea Miotti, has been lobbying to ban superintelligence for several years, most recently in the U.K., U.S., and Canada. I asked him how he gets legislators to take speculative risks seriously, and we dug into what plans might look like to actually pass a ban. Listen to learn more: What’s News with The Argument The Argument recommends, by Kobe Yank-Jacobs If we ever lose track of Justin Zuckerman, I’ll have the team split up and check all the movie theaters in the city. I’m shocked (and a little jealous) at how often he gets out to see good cinema. This week, he brings us It Ends, a “horror-ish movie,” which he described as a “Gen Z Waiting for Godot.” I was intrigued before he added that it was “funny, dark and existential” — at which point I was fully locked in. I guess I also had existential themes on the mind this week. One morning, a single line from a poem I read long ago just came to me: “Is death a stretch of time in which a life is just a flash?” The poem is called “From 20,000 Feet” by Heather McHugh. I suggest the version in The Vintage Book of Contemporary American Poetry, which, by tradition, my best friend and I always bring backpacking, extra weight be damned. We’ll stay thematically dark for just one more rec from senior editor John Robert Thomason, whose upcoming trip to Baltimore reminded him to suggest Michael Clune’s memoir White Out (about being addicted to heroin in Baltimore in the 1990s). Ben Lerner’s blurb called it _“_Disturbing, brilliant, hilarious—it’s as if Proust had written Jesus’ Son.” John told me this “seems accurate, with the caveat that I’ve never read Proust.” I, personally, have also shelved Proust until retirement. At this point, I was a little concerned for the team since all of us tossed out such psychologically grim material — maybe we’re all down about the end of summer — but thankfully, at least a few of us were into more upbeat selections. Milan Singh recommended Made In’s 5-quart stainless clad saucier, suggesting he had some fun in the kitchen. Jeremiah Johnson asked if he could recommend yet more Carly Rae Jepsen. Once denied, he offered up Game Changer instead_,_ calling it “the most wildly creative game show, maybe in the entire history of the genre.” Eli Richman mentioned _Lucky, “_a B-tier show with an A-tier cast and an S-tier theme song.” I suppose he was recommending the song, Horns of a Bull. Still, despite these cheerier recs, I couldn’t help but be concerned that we were subconsciously worried about racing toward summer’s end — the end of swim trunks and splashing around. Then a message landed reminding me of the three-day weekend to come. A whole extra day for sunshine. One more swim in the lake. I was grateful this called to mind yet another line from a poem, one by Mary Oliver, the patron saint of every gorgeous summer day (and about whom a documentary is now out). Speaking to God in the poem “Thirst,” she wrote: grant me, in your mercy,a little more time. Love for the earthand love for you are having such a longconversation in my heart. We have merch! We have quarter-zips, keychains, hats, and stickers. Each one is a great conversation starter in its own way. Buy them here. Subscribe More to read: [ The Opening Argument ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/seeing-like-an-elite)[ Seeing like an elite ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/seeing-like-an-elite) Kobe Yank-Jacobs · Sep 4 What do Americans hear when they watch Sen. Bernie Sanders or Vice President JD Vance rail against the elite? Are they thinking of right-wing tech billionaires? Imperious college professors? Liberal magazine writers? [ Read full story ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/seeing-like-an-elite) [ The Weekly Scroll ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/god-is-back-on-the-timeline)[ God is back on the timeline ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/god-is-back-on-the-timeline) Jeremiah Johnson · Sep 5 This week, we’re talking about Substack’s new religious debates, the continuing MAGA influencer scandal, how to retire from YouTube, and aura battles. [ Read full story ](https://www.theargumentmag.com/p/god-is-back-on-the-timeline) 1 This was a legitimate thing to worry about, but doesn’t seem to be a problem given the actual technology: Marijke Van Vlasselaer, Filip Van Droogenbroeck, and Bram Spruyt’s 2026 paper looks at whether Pangram is less accurate when evaluating the work of non-native speakers of English. It isn’t. That’s because Pangram isn’t really looking at how “unusual” a piece of writing is but whether it has the characteristic patterns of LLMs. The Wired article makes an odd gesture at a different Pangram-is-racist argument. There were several controversies this summer during which upcoming books were canceled after being discovered to be AI-written: “The three novels mentioned earlier — Shy Girl, Daggermouth, and Call Me, easily publishing’s biggest AI-detection scandals — were all written by writers of color.” But come on! As Zvi Mowshowitz put it: “They were not primarily written by people of color. They were primarily written by AIs.” That’s the whole problem! And as my colleague Jeremiah Johnson recently observed with respect to Cambridge’s Arday scandal, a community being unwilling to call out fraud if it’s perpetuated by people of color is not an anti-racist tendency; it is ultimately quite racist. 2 Many non-Pangram detectors don’t work, but many possible airplane designs also don’t work, and no one considers this a general argument against aviation; the thing that matters is whether any detection works. 3 The phrase “empires have always loved” mysteriously became all the rage in the last few years. See here, here, here, here and here. Before 2025, the only use of that phrase I have been able to find is a single Tweet. The logic of the sentence, too, is incoherent in an AI-characteristic way. “...sounds like paperwork, until you remember that empires have always loved paperwork”? Does remembering that make it sound less like paperwork? It’s a craft-ful sentence, but what is it actually saying??

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Sep 6 • 6:05 PM EDT • Technology • theargumentmag.com
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell's contract extended through 2030 season

LOS ANGELES — With the NFL season set to begin this week, the league completed a significant piece of off-the-field business by extending Commissioner Roger Goodell's contract through the 2030

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Sep 6 • 4:16 PM EDT • Entertainment • thederrick.com
Report: Fetterman apologized for dismissal of CHOP leaders, calling a leaked text message a ‘dumb joke’

In his statement to CNN, John Fetterman called a recent report from The Wall Street Journal a “hit piece from disgruntled staffers."

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Sep 6 • 12:57 PM EDT • Politics • inquirer.com
Mundell, Hellums lead Army's 569-yard rushing attack in 59-3 win over Bryant

Zach Mundell and Cale Hellums ran for two touchdowns apiece.

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Sep 6 • 11:12 AM EDT • Sports • spectrumlocalnews.com
Unfinished Pieces Of Business Heading Into The 2026-27 NHL Season: Red Wings, Jets And More
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Sep 6 • 10:02 AM EDT • Business • sports.yahoo.com
Dodgers notes: Shohei Ohtani, Tommy Edman, pitching staff

Shohei Ohtani has been absent from the Dodgers lineup for three consecutive games. So far the team has had no problem picking up the pieces, as the team is currently on a three-game winning streak with a chance to sweep the Washington Nationals on Sunday. Ohtani hasn’t been his usual self over his last 12 […]

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Sep 6 • 8:05 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Broncos have to find consistency on the ground in 2026

The Broncos have the pieces to build a more balanced offense, but their running game must become more effective in 2026.

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Sep 6 • 6:00 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
From the Treasure of Villena to the French Crown Jewels: The lucrative business of stealing pieces of history

The spectacular rise in the price of gold over the past nine years has triggered a wave of increasingly violent heists at European museums, which are struggling to protect themselves

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Sep 6 • 12:00 AM EDT • Business • english.elpais.com
Twins 6, White Sox 4: Y’all Come Back Now

The Twins may only have 68 wins on the year, but the ability to come back from deficits both early and late seems to have defined manager Derek Shelton’s early tenure with the team. Tonight, down 3-0 after the first inning, Minnesota put together a midgame rally to even the series one apiece, and deliver […]

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Sep 5 • 10:25 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
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Bucs HC Bowles Outlines Veteran DT's Added Value

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' defensive front has a lot of new pieces, with A'Shawn Robinson and Rakeem Nuñez-Roches bringing veteran presence to a young front seven.

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Sep 5 • 9:02 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Dodgers filling in at designated hitter

Shohei Ohtani is the biggest piece of the Dodgers puzzle, whether he pitches or not. He’s the team’s best hitter by a sizable distance, and getting him right for the postseason is of the utmost importance. So as he potentially sits for a third straight game for the first time since joining the Dodgers, let’s […]

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Sep 5 • 3:05 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Kennedy Center renews call for Trump-backed shutdown after part of a ceiling collapses

No one was injured when a piece of the ceiling inside the Kennedy Center's grand foyer collapsed Friday evening, said Roma Daravi, the center's vice president for public relations.

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Sep 5 • 1:33 PM EDT • Politics • pbs.org
San Francisco 49ers: Place Rotational Piece on Injured Reserve

The San Francisco 49ers’ EDGE rusher room is very thin heading into Week 1. Nick Bosa recently returned to practice at full capacity after recovering from an ACL tear and knee tendinitis, which later followed. Mykel Williams is on the PUP list while recovering from an ACL tear and meniscus damage and will miss at […] The post San Francisco 49ers: Place Rotational Piece on Injured Reserve appeared first on Gridiron Heroics.

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Sep 5 • 12:57 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Player Ratings: Real Betis 1-0 Real Madrid

Real Madrid left Seville empty-handed despite controlling much of the game and creating more than enough opportunities to get a result. A combination of poor finishing, a missed penalty, and one decisive Real Betis set piece condemned Madrid to a 1-0 defeat. Here are the player ratings. Thibaut Courtois — 7 Made four saves, including […]

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Sep 4 • 8:21 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
15 discouraging hours with Onimusha: Way of the Sword, and 10 brilliant ones with He Who Watches

In the last few weeks, while playing some video games that I might review, I emailed two cries for help. I sent the first to a rep for Capcom, confessing that the company’s samurai game Onimusha Way of the Sword (out today for PC and console) was crushing me. “Feels like I’m playing ‘hard’ mode, not ‘normal,’” I wrote. “And I don’t want to have to knock it down to “story”. I’m exploring, trying to level my gear, but these two-phase boss fights with no mid-fight checkpoints are brutal.” I wagered I was only about halfway through the game, if that. I wasn’t sure I could keep up with the steepening difficulty curve. Was I missing something? Then, on Monday, I took some photos of some puzzles that were baffling me in the mind-bending He Who Watches (out now on PC), wrote out lengthy descriptions of how I’d been trying to solve them and asked Bobby Vanden, the game’s solo developer, for a nudge in the right direction. I told Vanden I’d spent hours on these puzzles. “I’m stuck in triplicate,” I told him. Could he tell me if the solutions I was attempting were even on the right track? I didn’t mention that the puzzles—coupled with major time pressures from other work—were stressing me out so much that playing the game was giving me headaches. This double dose of panic was unusual. I’m used to managing a workload full of reporting and reviewing, used to a crowded schedule and the need to stay calm amid the bustle. But I was stressed about these games. No one was forcing me to review them, nor even play them. I’d simply found them interesting enough to start, hoped they’d be interesting enough to write about and I’d sunk hours into them assuming I’d made the right call. Suddenly, however, I felt trapped. I was emailing for a way out. Above: This guy took me about an hour to beat. The feedback I got from Capcom confirmed my fears. They didn’t say it, but I will: Onimusha Way of the Sword is not for me. It’s a brutally hard game in need of a normal difficulty level. It’s a game that spikes so severely during its abundant boss fights—yet offers such flawed ways to improve when outside of them—that it feels like a bait-and-switch. In the new Onimusha, you play as famed samurai Musashi Miyamoto, aided by a magical soul-absorbing gauntlet that is possessed by a lady who offers advice. (Way of the Sword is a continuation of Capcom’s long-dormant Onimusha series, but that set-up had me wondering if the company was cribbing from their ill-fated Bionic Commando reboot; read about “wife-arm” when you get a chance). Way of the Sword is partially set in 17th century Kyoto, an explorable city where Miyamoto can fight demons, help civilians and eventually rescue ghostly dogs. The city evolves over time, with new mini adventures and obtainable loot on offer, all feeding into systems that promise to upgrade your gear and sword-fighting skills. Upgrades, however, are so incremental as to be imperceptible, causing the exploration of Kyoto to feel like inconsequential busywork. From that hub, players can go on linear missions into forests and old temples, where they will encounter many of the game’s tough bosses. Combat in Way of the Sword is akin to many modern melee games. Players are asked to mix attacks with dodges and parries. They’re encouraged to deplete an enemy’s stamina bar in order to do greater damage to its health bar. The old Onimusha games’ signature move was the issen, a counter-attack so sudden it’s all but pre-emptive. You strike just as they begin to strike toward you, beating them to the cut. By definition, the issen is a high risk move, leaving you wide open to pain. It feels risky in the game, especially against bosses, who can maul you in just a few blows. A game might train you to perform an issen well by offering a variety of lesser enemies who are not as tough as the boss but get close. Or it might offer a toehold against bosses by saving or checkpointing the player’s progress when a boss’ first health bar has been destroyed and before the second health bar appears. It might offer the less skilled player a chance to over-level their character, should the player simply commit to playing through its optional sidequests. Way of the Sword does none of this. Fighting its trivially easy grunt enemies and then its ferociously adept bosses is like playing a game of chess where I’ve got a rook, while the opposing side is all pawns and five queens. Bosses simply don’t checkpoint. You may be able to clear a boss’ first phase without taking much damage. Good for you. Do it again, every time you fail the second phase. As for the the central Kyoto hub, I kept pace with all of its added side activities and never felt like I was overpowered. Bosses could still easily buckle me. The new Onimusha, I concluded, is just too discouraging to keep playing. The advice I got from Capcom had been well-intentioned. They reminded me of the game’s various systems. They alerted me to an optional assist that flashes recommended button inputs (basically: counter this move; dodge that move). It was a little helpful. So was dropping down to “story mode,” which I tried last night. Story mode turns on those button prompts by default. It makes countering and dodging way too easy, nearly automatic. I don’t consider myself a master of action games like these, but I’ve cleared the likes of God of War, Stellar Blade, Star Wars Jedi and others of sub-Sekiro difficulty and had a fun time doing so. Not here. Not yet. Unless they patch Onimusha: Way of the Sword and add a middle difficulty or just checkpoint the damn bosses when they’re between health bars, my streak of loving Capcom games released in 2026 will likely end at two. It’s a shame, because I was having a good time finding those ghostly dogs. And then there’s He Who Watches, a phenomenal first person puzzle game with Portal vibes, except instead of a portal gun you’ve got a magical bow that shoots one arrow that can activate switches or be used to drag blocks. The twist is an actual twist: you can also walk on walls and the ceiling, reorienting gravity as you do, thereby placing blocks onto those other surfaces. Walking on walls and ceilings to solve problems is really the best thing. Would that I could in reality. He Who Watches consists of locked-room challenges, each brief enough to only require about a minute to actually solving, though it will take five, 10, eventually 30 minutes to figure out said solutions. They are not obvious! It’s a game of layered mechanics and shocking solutions. For example, see if you can follow this: You can drag a block to a wall. Then you can walk on the wall, which now feels like the floor, and drag that block across the wall. Later, back on the floor, you might realize you can look up. The block is still on the wall, stuck to it. You can shoot your magic arrow to its underside. Doing so creates a tether, so that you can yank the block off the wall and carry it, as if it were a balloon, into the spot where you need it to be to solve the puzzle. Here, watch Vanden explain some of the game’s basics in this launch trailer: As with any great puzzle game, the solutions to He Who Watches’ puzzles elicit relief and amazement. Oh my god, that worked! I didn’t even think that could be possible! Learning to solve the game’s puzzles feels like learning magic. But, oh, does the game get hard. Its Steam reviews, mostly glowing, are full of players remarking how quickly He Who Watches made them sweat. Wrote one: “loving this one already although my brain is hurting!” Wrote another: “As you get further in the game it feels like you need an IQ level of at least 120+.” Vanden has shown some mercy. Each locked room puzzle includes an optional junior version of the puzzle, meant to teach you. Difficulty nevertheless ramps severely. By the time I was emailing Vanden for help, I was struggling to even clear one of the hint puzzles. When I messaged him, my stress was exacerbated by strange things I’d found in the game’s various hubs: suspicious passageways, odd blocks and some intriguing locked doors. These were hints of secrets, I realized, yet I sensed I needed to play further into the game to understand them. I was stuck, but I wanted to see the rest. Vanden offered to give me the exact solutions, to solve those three puzzles for me, but first he gave four nudges. Three were for the specific puzzles, but his best hint was for all and ultimately proved to be a terrific life lesson: go back a bit, he suggested. Do the puzzles right before those. They were teaching you something. Focus on what their lesson was. Don’t rush, in other words. Recognize what you’ve accomplished. Build off of that. I did so. I absorbed the lessons. I saw those three tough puzzles in a new light. I solved one the night after he wrote back, another the morning after. I left a third for another time. I didn’t need it and I wanted to plunge deeper into the game, closer to the moment when I was sure I could start unlocking those secret doors. My head stopped hurting, too. He Who Watches feels special. It’s got more challenges, and I’m undeterred. It’s also nice that its puzzles don’t have a surprise second health bar. Game File is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Subscribe Item 2: In brief… 🎮 Ilari Kuittinen, co-founder of Helsinki-based Housemarque (Super Stardust HD, Resogun, Returnal) has stepped down from his studio, after a 31-year run, saying he’s “ taking a rare and well-deserved breather.” Sony purchased Housemarque in 2021, and the studio released its newest game, Saros, earlier this year. Trend-watch: Sony-owned Insomniac saw its founder Ted Price retire in early 2025, after a 30-year run. Sony-owned Sucker Punch saw its co-founder Brian Fleming step down in late 2025, after a 28-year run. 👀 Savvy Games Group chief Brian Ward is stepping down from the Saudi-government-backed games conglomerate, Bloomberg reports. No word on a long-term successor yet, nor if this augurs any closer integration between Savvy and Electronic Arts. EA was purchased by a consortium led by Saudi’s sovereign wealth fund, in early August. 💿 Square Enix has denied a Japanese media report that the company was planning to go private. In very different Square Enix news, the company revealed that the physical version of Final Fantasy VII: Revelation, the April 2027 finale of its radical remakes of FFVII, will include just one disc in its case, requiring a download for the rest. The first two FFVII remakes in the trilogy shipped on two discs apiece. While Square hasn’t commented on the reason why, a feature here in Game File last month broke down the processes and costs for physical games. The expense of a second disc comes out of the game publisher’s cut of each copy. Square could be saving in excess of a dollar a copy with this move. 🟥 Grand Theft Auto IV’s 26-minute ’‘extended look” gameplay showcase that premiered on Netflix last week—and was exclusive to the platform for six hours—drew 31.1 million views in its first four days, the streamer announced. (Netflix calculates views as total viewed hours divided by runtime; excludes replays). Compared to YouTube: The version that later premiered on Rockstar Games’ YouTube channel is sitting at 22.6 million views after seven days (YouTube’s more liberal counting system tallies anyone who viewed even just the first few second.) Compared to other Netflix mega-events: Last year, Stranger Things season 5’s first four episodes, which debuted together, drew a record 59.6 million views in their first few days on Netflix. For more of a live event type of comparison, in 2024, the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson boxing match drew 65 million concurrent streams as it happened; Netflix didn’t release live numbers for the GTA premiere. ☁️ Microsoft is changing the way it charges for cloud gaming, from an all-you-can-play offer for Xbox Game Pass subscribers, to caps for the subscription’s tiers (15 hours per month at the Ultimate tier), with the option to buy more hours in bulk beyond that. The company also said it will sell batches of cloud gaming time to non-Game Pass subscribers, details TBA. Microsoft does not release figures for cloud game usage, but said its changes would impact 4% of Game Pass subscribers. That implies a small portion of its subscribers exceed the 15-hour monthly mark. Cloud gaming offers the promise of playing games without the need for console or PC hardware, as the graphics, sound and controls are all transmitted via a streaming connection. Microsoft notes that its cloud gaming service can be used for a range of things, including Xbox One players using it to play newer-gen Xbox Series games via streaming; and people playing games via streaming, sans any console, “in markets where consoles are less available or affordable.” (That latter use case could even be relevant in Xbox’s home market soon, as console prices keep rising.) Take Two Interactive chairman Strauss Zelnick recently told investors he expects game-streaming tech, which has been only lightly adopted by gamers for over a decade, to be widely used within three years. 🇺🇸 The Trump administration has published multiple agenda-driven web video games to the White House’s website. One called Build The Wall partially clones Tetris as it asks players to build a wall to stop a “zombie border siege.” While actual Tetris involves clearing lines and basically not building a wall, the Trump-backed game omits the line-clearing aspect (and omits the fun as well). On Instagram, Tetris’ official license holders reacted by stating: “At Tetris we believe in the power of connection and bringing people together, not dividing them. To our fans everywhere: we love you, we see you, and we’re grateful to have you in our community. P.S. The Tetris Company was not involved in the creation of ‘Build the Wall.’ P.P.S.: We take copyright infringement very seriously.” Item 3: The week ahead: Tuesday, September 8 Game releases: Mewgenics (consoles; already out on PC) is an engrossing tactical combat game (with cats). It is getting its console port right after the release of a Star Wars tactics game and ahead of the late September launch of a Fire Emblem–a bumper crop for the genre. Wanderburg (PC) is an auto-shooting game like Vampire Survivors, but you’re a castle on wheels Event: Nintendo airs a 30-minute Nintendo Direct (10am ET) focused on The Legend of Zelda’s 40th Anniversary. A full unveiling of the upcoming remake of The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time is expected. Will they also show footage from next year’s live action movie? Tease the next big 3D Zelda? Add Link to Mario Kart World? Shadow-drop a new Tingle game? Wednesday, September 9 Event: Nintendo again! On this day, they’re planning to air a 45-minute Nintendo Direct (10am ET) focused on games heading to Switch 2 this winter. Followed by about an hour of gameplay demoed by the company’s Treehouse team. The September Nintendo Directs are always some of the year’s biggest. The 2025 edition included announcements of several major 2026 Switch/Switch 2 games: Pokémon Pokopia, Mario Tennis Fever, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, Fire Emblem Fortune’s Weave. Plus the return of the Virtual Boy. Friday, September 11 Game release: EA Sports NHL 27 (PlayStation, Xbox) is a hockey game. There are so few that an indie studio that had been making wacky sci-fi first-person shooters just announced that, hey, we’re going to fill a void and make a hockey game for PC.

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Sep 4 • 6:23 PM EDT • Technology • gamefile.news
30 Open World Game Masterpieces You Need to Play

From web-swinging superheroes and sword-swinging monster hunters to bank heists and shrine raids, these are the 30 open world masterpieces you need to play.

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Sep 4 • 11:30 AM EDT • Technology • ign.com
Sony's PlayStation disc plant is losing 10 percent of its volume in 2028, not 90

Sony’s PlayStation disc plant is losing 10 percent of its volume in 2028, not 90 Sony won’t license disc pressing to anyone else, Microsoft does, and a former PlayStation boss thinks that’s the whole problem. When Sony DADC chief Dietmar Tanzer spoke with an Austrian broadcaster in July about PlayStation disc production at the Thalgau plant, a number of press outlets misunderstood the report, writing that production would fall to a tenth of current levels. It won’t. Sony DADC confirmed to Game this week that the figure is a 10 percent decline, not a decline to 10 percent. “To clarify and avoid any misleading information: in that statement Dietmar anticipated an overall product volume decline by 10 percent, not a decline down to 10 percent,” a spokesperson with Sony DADC told Game. That figure covers 2028. Tanzer didn’t put a number on the years after, and the spokesperson declined to comment further. What we do know is that on July 1, PlayStation announced that physical game disc production for all new games releasing on PlayStation consoles will be discontinued starting January 2028 and that the transition has no impact on games that have already released in disc format or will be releasing in disc format prior to that month. “So, there will be reorders going to the market after January 2028,” the Sony DADC spokesperson said. “For details around that I would ask you to liaise with the PR team from PlayStation, as we can’t speak or comment on their behalf.” PlayStation officials did not respond to questions about reorders or other disc-related matters. But I did recently speak with Shawn Layden, Game Industry Strategic Advisor and former chairman of SIE Worldwide Studios, who called a future without physical PlayStation discs “depressing, but solvable.” then added, “I think.” The chief hurdle to third-party manufacturing of collector’s editions or any other version of a PlayStation game disc is that Sony owns the proprietary process to press those discs, Layden said. “And unless they decide or determine a way to license that to some of these bespoke disc manufacturers, there’s no way to make it happen,” he said. Layden was careful to add that he understands the concept but doesn’t have “line of sight on the particulars.” “Depressing but solvable, I think.” — Shawn Layden Microsoft already licenses replication to outside plants. Xbox discs are pressed by manufacturers Microsoft certifies as Authorized Replicators, a term defined in its publisher agreements, with the approved list set at the company’s sole discretion and Microsoft retaining the right to halt manufacture. The structure is still in place today: publishers select an Authorized Replicator in Partner Center and submit a bill of materials created with a Microsoft representative. Sony, by contrast, presses PlayStation discs through Sony DADC, its own manufacturing subsidiary. No one I spoke with said they were in discussions with Sony about doing that, and PlayStation hasn’t responded to questions about whether it would be open to a licensing deal. There is an obvious reason Sony might not want to. Niko Partners analyst Daniel Ahmad pointed it out on the day of the announcement: it’s a platform-led decision, he wrote, designed to cut costs, eliminate the resale market, and drive all revenue through the PlayStation Store. The math is not subtle. On a $70 third-party game sold through the PlayStation Store, Sony keeps $21. Sold at retail, Ahmad says, it earns about half that. Licensing disc replication to an outside manufacturer might not be worth it. And even if it were, it seems unlikely that such a deal would come from boutique companies like iam8bit, which sells collector’s editions of video games. “We would absolutely love to find a way forward to continue making physical PlayStation games,” said Jon Gibson, co-owner and co-creative director of the company. “We are big believers in giving humans the option to truly own media. If we can play a role in helping make that a reality for the future of PlayStation games, count iam8bit in!” If it were to happen, it would most likely be with a company like Conectiv Supply Chain Solutions, a Memphis-based manufacturer of optical discs and vinyl records that also runs third-party logistics, fulfillment and distribution for packaged media. The company, which was formed in 2025 when Los Angeles private equity firm Variant Equity Advisors purchased Vantiva’s Supply Chain Solutions division, traces its lineage back to Technicolor. When it sold the division, Vantiva described the business as having served video game creators for more than 25 years. Conectiv is also buying, not shrinking. Last month it acquired SDS, the distributor for Universal and Warner Bros. home entertainment, consolidating those studios’ packaged-media pipeline from pressing plant to retail shelf. I reached out to Conectiv and its CEO, but haven’t heard back. Layden pointed to music and books in our discussion about the ongoing value of physical media. “No one ever saw the comeback of cassette tape,” he said. “And vinyl didn’t so much come back. The flame went down, the fire’s dying, but the ember was always there, and it just kind of came back. Much like the book business. We thought we’d all be on Kindles right now. “I believe that physical media is crucial and important. One of the things that makes us gamers, one of the core game mechanics, going back to the beginning of time, is collecting stuff. “Did you get all the diamonds in Crash Bandicoot? Did you get all the stars in Mario? And we like to collect our games. And we have a game shelf. And we put all our boxes up there. And if you’re super hardcore, when you buy a game, you buy two copies, right? One stays in the shrink wrap, and you play the other one. What happens to that important cultural part of the gaming world? You know, we buy the steelbook and the three-disc Final Fantasy set and the figurine and, you know, you can’t download any of that. “What happens to that?” And Layden believes it shouldn’t have been a revenue question for PlayStation. “This was a core thing to the experience of our most devoted fans,” he said. “Yeah, it’s fan service. Why would we take that away? Well, we can’t afford to. It’s already 120 bucks, you know, limited edition special purchase onyx box version of whatever, and those sell at a higher rate than the box selling at $69.99 does. So yeah, the market has said they will continue to buy them. You’re just saying you just don’t want to make them anymore.” Layden said he was recently talking with someone about these sorts of business decisions and how they’re made. Too often, he said, it’s all about the financials and nothing else. “OK, we can do this and save this much money, or we can invest this to look at that outcome, or we can do this and have this happen over there, or move this team to Sri Lanka,” he said. “But each one of those, someone also has to have a ledger there saying, ‘OK, what is the brand impact from that move?’ “Iif you can’t resell it, do you really own it?” — Shawn Layden “If we do that, dollars and cents work out. I get it. That’s just math. But what’s the brand impact? Are people going to say, ‘Good move, you guys?’ Or are they going to say, ‘We hate you guys. Quit doing that.’ And sometimes they say, ‘We hate you.’ Then you take a note and say, OK, how much of that can we live with? How much ‘we hate you’ is OK. And when does it go over the line? “I see a lot of companies making decisions which, objectively speaking, I don’t know what the dollar end of that was for you, Mr. Company, but your brand value just dropped 30 percent. So I hope it was worth it.” Of course, shifting to a digital-only model for games raises other issues beyond simply wanting to collect. The biggest is ownership. Layden pointed out that once you go to a streaming-only or download-only model, it’s just a digital footprint on a hard drive. “What does ownership mean anymore?” he said. “It’s a genuine question. Well, in fact, it’s not even a question anymore. It’s like you are shifting the model from ownership to accessibility. “And what’s always been true, which people forget, is you’ve never been able to sell your iTunes library. And you can’t sell your PlayStation download library. So if you can’t resell it, do you really own it?” The touching tribute found in the credits for Star Wars Zero Company. Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy Interview and Hands-On with a Minoan Masterpiece Star Wars Zero Company hands-on: Attack Astromechs, permadeath, and delightfully fatal Rube Goldberg tactics Control Resonant opens up as you get stronger — and as characters start trusting you

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Sep 4 • 7:57 AM EDT • Technology • game.substack.com
Scientists map key protein interactions linked with profound autism

Research published in the journal Science illuminates a "missing piece" in the biological understanding of profound autism and offers new targets for drug development.

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Sep 4 • 6:00 AM EDT • Science • npr.org
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Analysis | Ken Paxton and the politics of timepieces

Ken Paxton campaigned while wearing a very expensive watch, some political observers believe. Will it hurt his race?

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Sep 4 • 5:39 AM EDT • Politics • washingtonpost.com
Before you sign: What imaging joint venture contracts leave out

In this Radiology Business opinion piece, radiologist Mayur Virarkar, MD, MBA, discusses some of the key lessons learned from reviewing 30 years of literature on JV deals.

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Sep 3 • 11:39 PM EDT • Business • radiologybusiness.com
Brewers Waste Henderson's Gem in 2-1 Loss to Cubs

Chicago Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong’s decisive blast and a dormant top of the order wasted Logan Henderson's seven-inning masterpiece for the Milwaukee Brewers.

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Sep 3 • 10:05 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
BEYONCÉ MARKS HER BIRTHDAY WITH THE RELEASE OF A REMASTERED DELUXE "B'DAY" ALBUM HER COMING-OF-AGE MASTERPIECE IS AMPLIFIED WITH UPGRADED VISUALS, SURPRISE NEW TRACKS, AND SPANISH LANGUAGE SONGS, INCLUDING COLLABORATIONS WITH MALUMA AND THE LATE SELENA

/PRNewswire/ -- Today marks Beyoncé's birthday and the release of a voluminous remastered B'DAY, her coming-of-age second album. When it was released on...

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Sep 3 • 7:05 PM EDT • Entertainment • prnewswire.com
Trump appointees advance plans for Lafayette Square fencing and White House gates

Pieces of President Donald Trump's wide-ranging Washington makeover made their next step toward approval Thursday, but not without substantial critiques of plans for permanent fencing and gates around Lafayette Square in front of the White House.

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Sep 3 • 6:53 PM EDT • Politics • pbs.org
🙂 Positive (35%)
Rams Could be Without Multiple Key Players for Week 1

The Los Angeles Rams may be without several key players for Week 1, with a few different pieces of news yet to be finalized.

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Sep 3 • 6:34 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Scientists Just Made a Game-Changing Discovery: Diamonds Can Produce Electricity

Scientists long thought this pricey piece of carbon held no piezoelectric properties, but a new study says that isn’t the case.

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Sep 3 • 8:00 AM EDT • Science • popularmechanics.com
Cardinals rumors: Arizona making progress on Michael Wilson contract extension

The Arizona Cardinals are in for a rough 2026 campaign . After a tumultuous 2025 campaign, Arizona is still quite far from light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. While they have some intriguing pieces on their roster, it’s unfortunately not going to be enough to contend in the best division in the NFL this year. That being said, the best thing […] The post Cardinals rumors: Arizona making progress on Michael Wilson contract extension appeared first on ClutchPoints.

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Sep 3 • 1:25 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
US judge rejects bid to break up Google's ad business

A US federal judge on Wednesday refused to force Google to sell a division of its digital advertising business, rejecting the government's push to break up part of the company's ad empire.The decision is the second time in recent years that a federal judge has declined to dismantle a piece of Google's business, after a judge last year refused to force the sale of its Chrome browser in a separate monopoly case over online search.

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Sep 2 • 12:15 PM EDT • Business • finance.yahoo.com
Detroit Lions RB to start the 2026 season on injured reserve

Pacheco runs hard when healthy, and the Lions wanted him to be a complementary piece to Jahmyr Gibbs out of the backfield

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Sep 2 • 8:13 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Fire destroys Forest City building, home to family business for over 100 years

A fire destroyed a piece of Forest City history Monday evening, gutting the three-story building on West Main Street.

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Sep 1 • 6:55 PM EDT • Business • wlos.com
Los Angeles Dodgers Announce Will Smith News Before Cardinals Game

After winning their series against the Detroit Tigers this past weekend, the Los Angeles Dodgers are returning home to face the St. Louis Cardinals. With the calendar turning to September, that means MLB rosters have officially expanded. And the Dodgers are returning a key piece to their offense in the form of Will Smith, who […] The post Los Angeles Dodgers Announce Will Smith News Before Cardinals Game appeared first on HEAVY.

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Sep 1 • 6:12 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Mark Madden: England gets football — and sports fandom

I can hear the groans from across the Atlantic: “Not another soccer column! Who cares?” It’s football, not soccer. And I care. But this won’t Xerox my usual piece about the glory of Liverpool F.C. and its epic stadium, Anfield. Glory is in limited supply after opening the new season

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Sep 1 • 9:52 AM EDT • Sports • triblive.com
Sony Bravia Theater Trio review: The three-piece soundbar alternative

The Bravia Theater Trio is a capable three-piece option for larger TVs, but you’ll need additional gear for truly immersive sound and adequate bass.

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Sep 1 • 8:45 AM EDT • Technology • engadget.com
SU Art Museum 'Space and the Sacred' contrasts religion, science

The Syracuse University Art Museum's latest exhibit showcases pieces by Letterio Calapai that explore space and Catholicism.

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Aug 31 • 10:23 PM EDT • Science • dailyorange.com
North Adams businesses rebuilding after truck crashes into storefront

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. (NEWS10) — Two businesses in North Adams have been picking up the pieces after a truck crashed into their storefronts Thursday night, shattering both the outside and inside…

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Aug 31 • 6:33 PM EDT • Business • news10.com
Why Paolo Banchero Needs to Have an Elite Year

With Desmond Bane joining a revamped roster, Orlando’s franchise centerpiece faces a defining crossroads to silence critics, master his shooting, and elevate the Magic into elite contention.

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Aug 30 • 9:22 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
A new browser feature hides which website you're visiting from your ISP, and it has nothing to do with a VPN

Security and privacy requires layers, and this is the latest piece of the puzzle.

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Aug 29 • 4:30 PM EDT • Technology • makeuseof.com
Sen. Tammy Baldwin Pushes to End High Streaming Costs and Sports Blackouts

U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin met with local sports bar owners in Eau Claire on Friday to promote her “For the Fans Act,” a piece of legislation aimed at tackling rising sports streaming costs and eliminating broadcast blackouts for local games.

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Aug 28 • 5:45 PM EDT • Sports • weau.com
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Healthcare executive’s mansion gets star treatment in the national real-estate press

Now that the kids are in college, Rod and Linda Windley are looking to sell their not-so-little piece of heaven in Sandy Springs, Ga., for $18.25 million.

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Aug 28 • 4:54 PM EDT • Health • healthexec.com
Bizarre Fossil Turns Out to Be a 24-Legged Insect Science Somehow Missed

A huge evolutionary puzzle piece just landed in our laps.

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Aug 27 • 11:00 PM EDT • Science • sciencealert.com
Bizarre Fossil Turns Out to Be a 24-Legged Insect Science Somehow Missed

A huge evolutionary puzzle piece just landed in our laps.

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Aug 27 • 11:00 PM EDT • Science • yahoo.com
Braves Sweep Dodgers Behind Chris Sale’s Masterpiece

The Atlanta Braves completed a statement series at Truist Park on Thursday night, sweeping the Los Angeles Dodgers with a 1-0 victory in the series finale. The win gave Atlanta three straight victories over one of the National League’s top teams and marked the Braves first sweep of the Dodgers since 2013. Atlanta’s pitching was…

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Aug 27 • 10:23 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
Browns Make Surprise Veteran Addition Ahead of Roster Cuts

The Cleveland Browns are adding a key, veteran piece to their defense as the final roster takes shape. The post Browns Make Surprise Veteran Addition Ahead of Roster Cuts appeared first on HEAVY.

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Aug 27 • 8:34 PM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
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Georgia’s 87 rural hospitals to receive $93.3 million for health upgrades from US government

Nearly 90 hospitals in Georgia will get a piece of a new $93.3 million investment from the Trump administration.

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Aug 27 • 2:11 PM EDT • Health • wsbtv.com
Sunderland’s European Adventure Is Finally About to Become Reality

When that piece of paper with ‘Sunderland AFC - England’ is revealed on Friday, there will be so much pride on Wearside.

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Aug 27 • 1:00 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
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Philadelphia DA says he'll keep piece of Trump's White House ballroom 'after we all blow it up'

Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner said Tuesday he expects President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom to one day be blown up in an “official ceremony."

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Aug 26 • 12:46 PM EDT • Politics • foxnews.com
How Ikea Turned a Controller Thumbstick Into the Star of Its Xbox Gaming Range

Xbox and Ikea collab alert! This unique nine-piece collection for gamers arrives this fall and has a slew of Easter eggs.

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Aug 26 • 6:00 AM EDT • Technology • wired.com
Lakers Kuminga Deal Shifts Hawks Trade Power

The Lakers' push for Jonathan Kuminga just got real. Sports Illustrated reports a new trade piece is on the table. Here is why Atlanta must act now.

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Aug 25 • 7:05 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
'Bigger, better and impossible to miss.' This business transforms balloons into spectacular pieces.

IDAHO FALLS — A husband-and-wife duo is transforming events with impressive balloon artistry, and they are always willing to take on a creative challenge. Shasti and Ryan Ballard own BLOW IT UP! Parties based in Idaho Falls opened the business in 2018. Shasti makes custom balloon arches and garlands. Ryan twists balloons to create animals […]

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Aug 24 • 12:05 PM EDT • Business • eastidahonews.com
Discerning film fans flock to The Beacon’s tiny Seattle theater

A Columbia City cinema's offerings range from heady art-house pieces to obscure cult favorites to independent gems. You can even rent the theater for a screening.

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Aug 24 • 9:00 AM EDT • Entertainment • yakimaherald.com
HVRSD Prepares for New School Year With New Cellphone Rules, Mental Health Funding

With students returning to classrooms on Sept.1, the Hopewell Valley Regional School District is putting the final pieces in place for the 2026-27 school

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Aug 24 • 6:53 AM EDT • Health • mercerme.com
Chargers injury update: Rashawn Slater returns to practice

The Los Angeles Chargers' offense just got a massive piece back on the field.

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Aug 24 • 1:25 AM EDT • Sports • sports.yahoo.com
‘We’ll be OK’: Business owner optimistic after tornado damages her shop

Columbia residents continue to pick up the pieces after an EF-1 tornado tore through the borough’s downtown on Thursday.

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Aug 23 • 2:59 PM EDT • Business • lancasteronline.com
Rashawn Slater returns to Chargers practice

The Chargers got a key piece of their offensive line back at practice on Saturday.

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Aug 23 • 8:32 AM EDT • Sports • nbcnews.com
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